2022 Volnay Les Caillerets 1er Cru

The first thing to say is that since the 2021 vintage and the division of Domaine Bernard Moreau et Fils, Alex Moreau’s wines are labeled under his own name, a suggestion that I made a couple of years ago in order to distinguish them from those of his brother, Benoît Moreau. There is a tendency for writers to get excited about the “hot new kid on the block,” and there is no question that Benoît is conjuring brilliant wines. But don’t kid yourself that Alex Moreau has somehow forgotten how to make fabulous wines himself. Since his brother’s, sadly, rather acrimonious departure, there has been no decline in quality. Look on the bright side: We now have two excellent producers to follow. What has changed is the quantity of vines at Alex Moreau’s disposal. A couple of years ago, before the split, the Domaine oversaw more than 20 hectares. Now, Alexandre has only 5.5 hectares, losing half to his brother and halved again due to the expected end of fermage contracts. “I’m a small domaine now,” Moreau tells me, a tinge of regret in his voice. “I started the harvest on August 25, the second earliest after 2020. In my opinion, we have to adapt to make sure we pick the fruit at the right time. The problem is that this window is becoming much shorter, so you have to anticipate that moment. I want to pick ripe but not over-ripe. The wines were in barrel for 12 months then racked into stainless steel. They will be bottled next year.” Centered around Chassagne-Montrachet, I highly recommend these wines for their nerve and complexity.